Primal
by OfSoundMind
Summary: Following the most recent case in a string of kidnappings plaguing Zootopia, ZPD Officers Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde head out to investigate. But as the duo follow the trail deeper into the city's grimy underbelly, their everyday moralities are throw to the wind, and in order to survive and bring the case to a close they will have face their toughest foe yet; time.
1. Prologue

**Primal.**

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except any OC's, the plot/storyline and maybe some other things I can't think of atm. Everything else belongs to the Mouse and other owners respectively.

 **Prologue.**

"Cheese and crackers." sighed the bunny as she ran a paw across her damp forehead.

Stuck in Sahara Square at midday, the hottest time of the day, during the lunch hour rush, on her way to pick up and order? And on top of that, stuck with a 7 year-old bunny who apparently did not know the meaning of the phrase 'keep still?' No, no it was not a good day for Miss. Beatrix Bunton, who sighed once again in exasperation as she noted her daughter drifting away again.

"Suzie." she warned. The little bunny instantly froze, knowing that tone of voice all too well; one more step, instant grounding. Suzie turned her head around slowly, her little pink nose twitching in innocence. "What?" she asked just as innocently, though she knew very well what she had been doing.

"You know very well what," said her mother, repeating verbally her daughter's thoughts. "If I catch you trying to wander off again you'll get no dessert after dinner tonight. No pawsicle, just dinner and then straight to bed," she threatened as she waggled a finger in her daughter's face in warning.

Suzie pouted.

"But Tilly told me all about this new toy shop in Sahara Square called Claws 'R Us! She said it's where she got the brand new action figure for Kung Fu Panda 3 and it's right _there!_ Can we go look Mum please?" she begged as she pointed out said shop, her feet jumping in an excitable jig.

Her mother sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly.

"You just had your birthday; you have all those other figures from the movie at home. Why in Zootopia do you need _this_ one?" she asked.

"Because," Suzie drawled, clearly not impressed with her mother's lack of knowledge concerning toys. "This one has voice and karate actions; _non_ of the ones at home do that!"

"I'll say again; you just had your birthday. You're not getting it."

"But Tilly-"

"I don't care about what Tilly has or what Tilly gets because I'm not her mother; I'm _your_ mother you're _not_ getting it. End of story Suzie and that's _final_ ," her mother snapped, patience finally lost to the heat of the day.

Ears drooping in defeat, Suzie muffled an 'okay' to her mother and shuffled sulkily to her side, clasping the paw held out for her to hold.

As they walked along the pavement, Miss. Bunton couldn't help but feel a small pang of guilt. A sudden thought came to mind, and she smiled softly to herself.

"You know..." she started slowly, glancing casually at Suzie to spot any reactions. Nothing so far.

"...Christmas is coming up soon."

Aha. A small twitch of the ears. She grinned a little wider.

"If you're a very good bunny from now up till Christmas..."

A glance, ears erect; she now had Suzie's full attention.

"I'll tell Santa Paws all about your good behaviour and ask if he'll put it under the tree when he visits."

A gasp. "REALLY?!"

Bingo. Moody crisis averted. A full blown smile made its way across Miss. Bunton's face.

"But," she warned as she pulled Suzie to a stop in front of her. "I don't want to hear anymore about this action figure or any other toy, and no more asking for things until Christmas; understand?"

Suzie nodded with so much gusto her ears shook wildly around her head. Her mother laughed softly as she pulled Suzie into a tight hug, one which Suzie responded to immediately, sinking deeply into her mother's warmth and love.

"That's my smart little bun," her mother whispered as she began tickling her daughter's sides. Giggles immediately rose around the two.

"Mum stop that t-tickles please!" Suzie laughed as she tried fruitlessly to escape.

With laughter and chuckles, both started up the high-street again, with Suzie now happily skipping and humming as she held her mother's hand.

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

"What do you mean you don't have my order?!" Miss. Bunton raged. After reconciling with Suzie, both had made their way to their original destination; Peter's Post Box, a small postal office located on the high-street of Sahara Square, and the current reason behind Miss. Bunton's short fuse.  
The one receiving said anger, a wiry-haired stoat by the name of Lurie, seemed to cower under Bunton's harsh glare.

"T-there seems to h-have been a mix up in a few orders m-miss," he stated feebly. "We're currently t-trying to s-sort it all out and get to the bot-tom of it a-all, b-but un-nfortunately that means your o-order is delayed for a minimum o-of t-wo weeks at least..maybe more."

"Two weeks?!" cried Bunton. "I can't wait that long! My client wants _his_ order by next week and _I_ need _my_ order _now_ to finish _his_ order for next week!"

"I'm sorry miss," Lurie replied. "But there's n-nothing I can do. I can try calling the m-manager-"

"Yes please do," she snapped, temper as frayed as an aged carpet.

"Right away miss!" squeaked the poor stoat, physically relieved to turn away from the angered bunny and to the more placid (if kinder) telephone. Such a kind telephone...

Sighing frustratedly and closing her eyes tiredly, Bunton turned her head to Suzie, who had been sitting quietly beside her...

"I'm so sorry for taking so long sweetie. I'll only be a few minutes more and then we'll go on home okay?"

...or so she thought.

She opened her eyes.

No Suzie.

She looked around the shop for her daughter. Nothing. A small wedge of panic settled in her chest. "Suzie?" she called as she looked around a little more wildly.

"Excuse me," she asked turning to two elderly sheep behind her. "Did you see a little bunny walking around in here? With black fur, green eyes? Wearing a yellow dress?"

They hummed and looked at each other thoughtfully. "Now that you mention it," one began. "I do believe I recall seeing something of that description walk out the door I few minutes ago. Don't you Betty?" she said, turning to her companion.

Betty nodded instantly. "Oh yes," she rasped. "I do recall because I remember thinking 'my what a lovely colour' when I saw the dress. Very pretty. It also reminded me of the daffodils in my garden," she added.

"Out the door?" Bunton echoed in confusion. Why would she...

As she looked out of the window she noted that, just a couple of shops down the opposite street, lay a vibrantly coloured toy shop.

"Oh that is it," she hissed angrily. The two sheep looked at her in surprise.

"Pardon my dear?" one asked warily.

Bunton sighed. "It seems my daughter decided to take off to that new toy shop over there after I specifically _told her not to_. She is most definitely _grounded_ when we get home!"

Betty patted her paw fondly. "No matter what gender or species, children will be children!" she chuckled. "Go on and catch her; we'll keep your space open at the till, won't we Bea?" Her companion nodded, a toothy grin on her face.

"Make sure to give her a good box on the ear; always worked when my little ones strayed out of line!"

Bunton smiled. "Thank you both so much. I promise to be quick; you can even help me with the guilt treatment," she winked slyly as she walked towards the door, hearing laughter behind her.

Once outside she made a beeline for the shop, her foot just crossing onto the road when -

 _Screech!_

Jumping backwards, she just managed to avoid the large red van careering towards her at a ridiculous speed. Sprawled on the pavement, she turned her head to follow the van, mouth open to scream obscenities at the driver -

And she froze.

Green, terrified eyes, a little pink nose and a mouth open in a silent scream stared at her from the van's rear-window, until it all disappeared under a huge hairy paw, which dragged the little face below the window and out of sight.

But Bunton knew that little face, had had it memorised since the day she'd first seen it clearly in the hospital 7 years ago, all wrapped up in a fluffy white blanket and held tenderly in her arms.

She screamed.

"SUZIE!"

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

Hey guys. This is the same story as the one I deleted, which I deleted because I didn't like it, then I deleted it AGAIN because I had no faith in myself as a writer and kept stressing out over it because I'm a stickler for perfection so...yeah.

So I apologise in advance if chapter updates are not often and more so sporadic, but I hope you enjoy what I do have uploaded!

\- OFM.


	2. Chapter 1: Joke's on You

Primal.

Chapter 1 - Joke's on You.

 _Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything except any OC's, the plot/storyline and maybe some other things I can't think of atm. Everything else belongs to the Mouse and other owners respectively.

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

"Goo~d Morning Zootopia!" 

A cheery masculine voice cut through the early morning crisp, filling the small room with sound that seemed much louder than usual to the half-awake occupant, who blinked the sleep from their eyes tiredly.

"Here we are again!" the voice continued. "Another working day that starts even earlier for some of you workaholics, or else you wouldn't be listening to Early Bird; the radio channel airing from 5 till 7 in the morning, here to help you 'early birds' kick-start your day with a little more 'p-zazz!" He popped the 'p' for emphasis.

"Seeing as it's only just the beginning of the day, we're gonna start off pretty slow with a _very_ fitting number.  
Here it is; Frank 'Rat Pack' Sinatra's 'In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning."

A slow tune of blues music came across the radio, filling the room with soft ambience as a deep baritone voice began singing to the melody.

" _In the wee small hours of the morning ~ While the whole wide world is fast asleep ~"_

ZPD Officer Judy Hopps hummed contently and smiled, eyes half-lidded and she herself still half-asleep as she listened to the radio cast.

' _A very fitting song,'_ she thought amusedly as she threw the bed covers off, shivering slightly as the cold morning made itself known. Shivering even more as she placed her feet on the frosty floorboards, she quickly made her way to the bathroom, proceeding to take a nice hot shower to wake her up.

Stepping into the rather small space, she sighed contently as the hot water dampened her fur, already feeling her body and mind perking up under the steady stream and readying her for the start of the day.

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

Judy bounced out of the bathroom, now fully refreshed, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready for work. Towelling her ears dry whilst humming a nonsensical yet rhythmic tune to herself, she turned to look at the clock, which read 6AM.

Grinning wickedly, she reached for her phone on the desk and dialled a number.

A groan was heard as the call was answered.

"Morning sunshine!" Judy chirped happily in response, her grin only growing wider as she heard a second groan.  
 _"I swear you never sleep Carrots,"_ yawned Nick over the phone, having just woken up. _"How can you get up so early?"_

"Comes with the job Nick. Something you should know, considering you signed up of your own free will," she teased, reaching for her badge on the bedside cabinet.

" _More like pressured into it by a 'hopped-up' bunny."_

"..."

"..."

"Your puns are terrible."

" _It's still early; leave me be."_

She laughed.

"Okay okay I'll give you that," she relented, using her cheek to hold her phone to her ear as she fastened on her badge. Once done, she looked at her reflection in the mirror, her chest puffing proudly as she polished the badge further with a paw.

" _So you should._ _Meet you at the usual place?"_

"You know it."

" _You paying? Bring extra 'cause I think I'm gonna need an extra shot of caffeine."_

She snorted. "Nice try wise guy. But thank you for reminding me of those $10 you owe me from last week."

She heard Nick click his tongue in mock annoyance. " _Damn. Ah well, worth a 'shot' right?"_

Judy rolled her eyes good-naturedly, the hints of a smile playing on her lips.

"Please don't. Like you said; it's too early."

A chuckle. _"See you in a bit Carrots."_

Shaking her head in amusement as she ended the call, Judy turned her radio off which had been droning quietly in the background, took one last look in the mirror as she grabbed her keys and headed out the door, excited to start a brand new day.

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

" _..._ so he says; _'Uniform? More like a pig in a blanket_!"

After meeting up with one another at Coco Coffee, their usual morning haunt, and ordering their regulars - (Judy's an iced coffee, and Nick's an Espresso-to-go) - both began walking down the street to work, casual talk between them along the way.

Officer Nick Wilde slapped his knee as he delivered the punchline, and wiping away the stray tears, he turned to his companion beside him with a large grin on his face, clearly expecting a familiar if not identical reaction.

Unfortunately, Lady Luck had apparently flown the coop.

"That's it? That's the joke you've apparently been _dying_ to tell me since you thought of it this morning?"

Stood in front of him with her arms crossed, foot tapping impatiently with a single eyebrow raised in disbelief and a little bit of irritation, Judy was by no means impressed, let alone amused.

Nick faltered in disbelief.

"Oh c'mon Carrots!" he cried. I worked all morning on that! How can you _not_ find that funny?"

Judy snorted. "Very easily." she replied dryly. "How can you _find_ that funny?"

"Very easily," he mimicked. "The joke's about an actual pig wearing a police uniform; need I clarify?" Widening his stance and placing his paws on his hips, he arched an eyebrow, daring her to argue.

She huffed, turning her head to the side. "It's still not funny," she muttered. "I find it insulting to the uniform." Her paw subconsciously reached for the badge on her chest, which she thumbed half-heartedly.

Nick's sharp eyes caught the movement. He smirked.

"Aw," he cooed, bending down slightly so they were face to face. "Did the wittle joke hurt the bunny's feewings?" 

One paw reached up and flicked her ear teasingly, the grin still plastered on his face. She swatted his paw away as she glared at him, both paws raising in mock surrender as he pretended to cower.

"Dumb fox," she retorted, eyes glimmering in amusement.

"Sly bunny," he hummed, his stance relaxing as he slipped a paw into his pockets. The pair continued their walk along the street, a companionable air surrounding them as they made their way to work.

"Still," Judy sighed as she clasped her paws behind her back, a small skip in her step. She turned to look at Nick mischievously. "That joke had terrible taste."

"You're just jealous Carrots," he said lazily as he took a casual sip of his coffee. "Jealous that you couldn't think of such a humdinger if given a hundred years."

"I can think of a _hundred_ jokes right nowand _all_ of them are better then the floozy one _you_ just told," she shot back.

"Go on then; hit me," he taunted as he played with his sunglasses, his walk jaunty. "Let's see if your comedic calibre is up to scratch."

"Alright then; a hippo and moose walk into a ba-"

" _...the recent increased string of kidnappings occurring in Zootopia over the past four months, citizens are advised and cautioned to be on the lookout and wary of any activity they deem suspicious."_

Pausing mid-sentence, Judy came to a stop in front of an electrical goods shop, where multiple flat-screen televisions were playing the same live newscast. Hearing Nick come up behind her, she turned her full attention to the screen, jokes forgotten.

Peter Moosebridge, a well-known news anchor for the ZNN, currently filled each screen.

" _ZPD's Chief of Police Bogo Cape issued this official warning during yesterdays press conference concerning said kidnappings, and asks anyone who is a witness to a kidnapping, older or more recent, to come forward."_

Judy's nose twitched as she listened to the news with mounting gloom. She turned to look at Nick to gauge his reaction, and was unsurprised to see an unusually grim look on his face as he watched the report. Not needing to ask him on his thoughts, she turned back to the screen.

During the split second, the camera had snapped quickly to a recording of the press conference, where Chief Bogo stood at the podium, multiple microphones huddled in front of him.

He spoke. _  
_

" _Over the span of four months, multiple mammals, numbering 12 total, have been kidnapped and disappeared without a trace. Aside from each victim fitting into a specific age-range, none of the victims have been noted to have anything in common in terms of their everyday lives. Nothing has shown an obvious link between each case or each individual themselves."_

He paused for a moment, waiting for his words to sink in as he surveyed the crowd.

" _However,"_ he continued. _"Whilst the evidence and clues are admittedly very low at this moment in time, the ZPD has not been and will not be deterred from this case; if anything, me and my officers are more determined every day to bring these kidnappings to a close."_

He turned to face the camera directly, his glare and frown hardened by flinty eyes and widened nostrils.

" _The ZPD will not rest until_ _all_ _of the missing mammals have been returned home safe to their families, and those responsible have been brought to justice by the law."_

He waved his hoof over the crowd.

" _No more questions."_

Following multiple shouts and queries into the case by frazzled reporters, Bogo made his way off the stage, disappearing behind the curtain.

The feed then cut back to Moosebridge.

" _For further detail on these kidnappings, or if you wish to report any information regarding the cases, you can visit the ZNN website at w.w. . /ZPDWatch, or you can report directly to the ZPD at the police station."_

Shuffling his papers, Moosebridge then turned to the screen once more with a notably brighter look on his face.

" _And now to the weather with Natalie Snowsford. Natalie?"_

" _Thank you Peter. Well so fa-"_

 _Tap._

Judy jumped and turned sharply, having been completely absorbed in the newscast. She looked at Nick.

"C'mon Carrots," he said firmly as he flicked his sunglasses open. He turned to her, no smile on his face; just grim determination, setting his eyes to a cold tone of jade.

Placing his sunglasses over his eyes, he once again began walking to work, Judy beside him, her eyes bright with focus and concentration.

Their gaits were notably quicker than before. He threw his now cold beverage into a bin as they walked by.

"We've got work to do."

~ ᴖᴥᴖ ~

You will never hear the beginning or end of those jokes. Why? Because I'm lazy.

Btw, If anyone gets that 'pigs in blanket'/police reference, kudos to you *winks slyly*

Side-note: I read somewhere that the type of coffee you order tells someone of your personality.

 _Iced coffee (Judy):_ _You're assertive and outspoken. You don't let season dictate how you live your life. Also, you like straws.  
_ I like to think Judy likes straws :) 

_Espresso (Nick):_ _You're clever, annoying, or both. You knowingly or unknowingly mispronounce eSpresso.  
_ Nick to a T.

Also considering Bogo has no official last name and he's actually a Cape Buffalo, I thought the name fit pretty nicely.

See you next time!

-OSM. 


End file.
